Job Description

Do you LOVE being outside, working with children and exploring the natural world? Do you have experience or interest in working in a garden or farm setting?  Are you excited to work collaboratively to make camp memorable for children aged 5-11 years old? Do you love to laugh, run through the sprinklers, and eat snacks from the garden? We are looking for high energy, upbeat, compassionate environmental educators to join our team for Growing Gardens summer camp in 2021! 

MISSION & HISTORY

Growing Gardens is a Boulder based non-profit organization established in 1998 with the mission to enrich the lives of the community through sustainable urban agriculture. Growing Gardens helps people experience a direct, deep connection with food, the land and each other through our programs for diverse populations: the Children’s Peace Garden (Ages 3-11), Community Classes, Community Gardens, Growing Gardens Food Project, and Cultiva Youth Project (Ages 12-18). Our activities are centered in the heart of Boulder on 11 acres of land that has been in agricultural use for the past 100 years. We expanded our programming in 2016 to include a one acre farm in neighboring Longmont, Colorado, which provides fresh produce and agriculture-based education to the Longmont community. To learn more about Growing Gardens, visit www.growinggardens.org

SUMMER CAMP DESCRIPTION 

Children’s Peace Garden Summer Camp strives to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards through hands-on learning experiences in the garden. We’ve found that connecting children with their food has lifelong impacts on their health and eating choices. We offer week long, full day camps for nine weeks in the summer for youth aged 5-11. Each week has a unique theme such as urban farming, farm to table cooking, or survival skills.

JOB TITLE: Summer Environmental Educator JOB STATUS: Full Time, Seasonal Summer Employee, Average 40 hours per week REPORTS TO: Summer Camp Coordinator PAY: $560 per week REQUIRED TRAINING: June 1-4, 8am-4pm. Training is paid hourly at $12.32 per hour. SUMMER CAMP SCHEDULE: Summer Camp is weekly June 1st - Aug 13th. There is no Summer Camp July 5th-9th, but there will be 3 days of mid-season prep July 7th-9th.

JOB PURPOSE:

Growing Gardens’ Summer Environmental Educator works to deliver high quality summer camp education programs. Educators co-lead a group of 15 campers each week and teach them about our garden and all it has to offer through lessons, activities, crafts, games and basic cooking at our Boulder farm site.  Working with the Summer Camp Coordinator, educators are responsible for preparing camp and leading children through activities. Summer Environmental Educators are essential in setting and attaining programming goals and objectives and developing new curriculum.

MAJOR FUNCTIONS AND ACCOUNTABILITIES

• The Summer Environmental Educator reports to Summer Camp Program Coordinator
• Works with fellow Summer Educators to prepare and lead week long summer camp
• Teach garden-based education programming for children at the Boulder Farm
• Maintain positive relationships with campers, parents and fellow staff
• Record keeping and administrative work documenting programming
• This job is outside in all weather conditions and involves many contact hours with program participants

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• The candidate must have at least 460 hours of satisfactory and verifiable experience working with school-age children.
• Please note: In your cover letter, indicate how you’ve met the 460 hours - hours must be with children aged 4-18 in groups of four or more. Babysitting hours cannot be counted.  
• Experience teaching in an outdoor or environmental education setting
• Exceptional relationship building skills
• Strong conflict resolution skills
• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively with the Education Team
• Adaptability to changing situations, needs of program participants and changing weather conditions
• Consistent positive attitude and ability to enthusiastically work all day outdoors with children

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with organic gardening/farming highly desired

A NOTE ABOUT WORKING WITH US IN THE TIME OF COVID-19:

Like everyone around the globe our operations have been challenged by this pandemic. We are asking for a few commitments and understandings from our interns and staff during this time that are not typically a part of this experience. They are:

• We ask that interns maintain what we are calling a “Covid-Safe” lifestyle while they work on our team. During the growing season we have to operate in relatively close-quarters and our work is farm-based (not a lot of working remotely). We consider this a blessing generally, but it means we must be exemplars of the standards set by The Boulder County Public Health Department. These change frequently, however at the time of this posting Boulder County Public Health guidelines include:  Wearing a face mask at all times, limiting gatherings to no more than 10 people from no more than 2 households, limiting travel to only “essential” travel, and following all County guidelines regarding testing in the event of illness or contact with anyone experiencing Covid-19 symptoms.

• We understand that our interns often live in shared living spaces with other young professionals, extended family, and all sorts of other situations. We only ask that you behave as cautiously as possible and ask the same of those you live with. 

• We will have daily screenings upon arriving at work including a questionnaire and a temperature check. 

• Our work has had to shift at a moments’ notice based on Public Health guidelines and changing priorities for the organization. We ask that interns are understanding of changing schedules and planned work as is necessary. 

• We have worked very hard to ensure that this is still a fantastic place to be, work, and learn. We are asking that you work hard at keeping our community safe.

INCLUSION STATEMENT

Growing Gardens is committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all participants. Growing Gardens stands in solidarity with communities and individuals around the world who have experienced the devastation of racism, inequality, and violence. We are an organization that strives to be inclusive and to bring all members of the community together to create positive change. We acknowledge that we have room to grow to continue to diversify and serve our community better. As we work diligently to develop a plan for the future, we are taking action now to further educate our team of staff, have difficult conversations within our leadership team, and create an action plan to identify and fill our shortcomings. We will continue to stand and advocate for those who have faced inequality and will strive to continue to create a safe and inclusive community for all.

ANTI-DISCRIMINATION STATEMENT

Growing Gardens prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination or harassment and will take affirmative measures to ensure against them, especially if they are carried out on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, marital status, national origin, disability, status as a veteran or disabled veteran, neurodiversity, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, genetic information, matriculation or political affiliation. This policy applies to all employees or potential employees, volunteers, participants, members of the Growing Gardens Board of Directors, people who serve on Growing Gardens’ committees, and anyone attending Growing Gardens’ events.  This policy extends to all aspects of employment at Growing Gardens, including hiring, transfer, promotion, training, working conditions, policies, compensation, evaluation, discipline and termination.

Additional Information

TO APPLY:

No phone calls please. Email your cover letter, resume and two references with “Summer Camp Application” in the email subject line to: shorowitz @growinggardens.org APPLICATIONS ARE ACCEPTED AND REVIEWED ON A ROLLING BASIS UNTIL FEBRUARY 15TH, SO WE RECOMMEND GETTING YOUR APPLICATION IN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. POSITION WILL REMAIN OPEN UNTIL FILLED.